Bucks County officials said they saw a slight a decline in COVID-19 cases last week, but that doesn’t mean the spread of the virus has been halted.
The county health department said 257 cases were reported for the week ending last Friday. The number was nine fewer than the week previous. Last week’s number marks the first weekly decrease in new cases since mid-June.
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While Bucks County reported a slight decrease last week, the county over the past month has seen numbers tick up. Statewide, increases have been reported since the restrictions were eased.
In a statement, Bucks County Health Department Director Dr. David Damsker said the slight decrease in cases may be an indication that the post-July 4th spike has reached its peak.
Previously, health officials have blamed some of the recent increase in cases on people traveling out of state and attending gatherings.
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“We said all along that we’d hit this small increase heading into green, with everyone being fully out and about,” Damsker said in the state. “Most importantly, hospitalization rates have remained low.”
Between Friday and Monday night, the county received word of 155 new infections with 38 being delayed reports that were no longer considered infectious. Counting all infections, there was an average of about 39 cases reported per day and 29 reported per day excluding delayed cases.
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The county received word of 54 new cases on Friday, 20 on Saturday, and a combined total of 81 for Sunday and Monday.
Looking at the 155 positive cases reported over the past four days, 38 were delayed reports that are at least two weeks old, 51 spread through household contact, 31 were attributed to community spread, 26 caught the virus out of state, six were infected at work, six were residents or workers at long-term care facilities, five were health care workers, and 30 were unable to be immediately interviewed by contact tracers.
The community spread number was the largest reported in recent weeks.
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As of Monday night, 23 Bucks Countians were in local hospitals with COVID-19 and three were in critical condition on ventilators.
Since the pandemic began, there have been 6,325 positive COVID-19 cases, 512 deaths, and 5,039 recoveries.
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The county has only seen two COVID-19 deaths this month.
Local, state, and federal officials have urged residents to social distance, sanitize their hands, avoid close contact with others, and wear a mask.
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“I trust all Americans to do the right thing, but we strongly advise everyone to especially, especially focus on maintaining a social distance, maintaining rigorous hygiene, avoid large gatherings and crowded indoor bars, and wear masks when appropriate,” President Donald Trump said during a news conference on Monday.
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